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Difficulty: MediumThe Second Great Awakening and Social Reform

George Ripley, letter to Ralph Waldo Emerson regarding Brook Farm, 1840:

"Our objects, as you know, are to insure a more natural union between intellectual and manual labor than now exists; to combine the worker and the thinker, prevent the decay of the mind, and the drudgery of the hand; to guarantee the highest mental freedom, by providing all with labor, adapted to their tastes and talents, and securing to them the fruits of their industry... to do away the necessity of menial services, by providing that every one shall share in the manual labor of the society."

Which of the following developments in the early nineteenth century was a major catalyst for the ideas expressed in the excerpt?

  1. The rise of religious revivals and reform movements that emphasized human perfectibilityAnswer
  2. B
    A decline in regional trade networks that forced northern communities to return to isolated household production
  3. C
    Supreme Court decisions that weakened federal control over commerce and encouraged states to fund communal societies
  4. D
    The rise of the Federalist Party to support agrarian cooperatives against manufacturing interests

Answer

The rise of religious revivals and reform movements that emphasized human perfectibility
The correct answer is correct because the Second Great Awakening promoted the concept of moral perfectionism—the belief that individuals and society could be improved to achieve a state of spiritual and moral holiness. This religious impulse directly inspired the creation of secular and religious utopian communities, such as Brook Farm, which sought to build cooperative societies to escape the competitive pressures of the growing market economy.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus to identify the core historical concept and goals of the community.
The stimulus describes Brook Farm, a utopian community founded by George Ripley, aiming to combine manual and intellectual labor and eliminate social divisions.
Understanding the nature of the community is necessary to connect it to the broader historical developments of the era.
2
Evaluate the early nineteenth-century developments that inspired such utopian and social reform initiatives.
The Second Great Awakening's promotion of moral perfectionism and the desire to create cooperative societies as alternatives to the industrializing market economy were major drivers.
This establishes the causal connection between the religious revivals and the social reform movements of Period 4.
3
Compare the options to identify the one that correctly reflects the historical catalyst for this community.
The rise of religious revivals and reform movements emphasizing human perfectibility is identified as the correct catalyst, while other options contain historical inaccuracies regarding the economy, courts, or political parties.
This confirms the correct option by matching historical evidence and eliminating inaccurate distractors.

Key Concept

The Second Great Awakening and Social Reform
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

The Second Great Awakening and Social Reform

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